Fagen et al - elephant learning Flashcards
what is the psychology being investigated
1) Operant conditioning
-This is the idea that we learn from consequences of our actions
positive consequences strengthen the behaviour so the behaviour is more likely to be repeated
Punishing consequences weaken the behaviour hence it is less likely to be repeated
2) SPR (secondary positive reinforcement) training
this is when a secondary reinforcement e.g a sound marker is paired with a positive reinforcement e.g food to enable an animal to make a marker food association
Explain operant conditioning
-This is a theory of learning , it is the idea that we learn from consequences of our actions
rewarding consequences (behaviour that has good consequences) strengthen the behaviour hence it is likely to be repeated
Punishing consequences ( behaviour that has bad consequences) weaken the behaviour hence it is less likely to be repeated
What is the background
-> Diagnosis and treatment of animals is an important part of captive animal welfare
-> Fagen et al , used SPR training in elephants to reliably and voluntarily get them to engage in a trunk washing procedure
-> Samples are obtained using water/saline solution from the trunk to test for tb (tuberculosis)
What is the aim
-To see whether free contant traditionally trained elephants can be trained to participate in a trunk wash by using SPR training.
What is the methodology
-Type of controlled observation
-(because the physical context of the elephant was changed to get them to trunk wash)
-
Describe the sample
-4 female juveniles (numbered 1-4)
- 1 female adult
-All housed at the same elephant stable in Nepal
- The juveniles were aged between 5-7 years
-The adult was estimated to be in her 50’s
- The elephants spent most of the day grazing in the jungle under control of their mahouts
- They spent the rest of the day leg chained to the stable , with a freedom to move 6-8 feet around the stable
What was the criteria for eligibility for the sample
-They could not be currently pregnant or looking after a calf
- They were docile
- Their mahouts (elephant handlers) were willing to take part in the study
- None of the elephants had previous experience of SPR training
Describe the SPR technique used
-The primary reinforcer was chopped banana
-The secondary reinforcer was a short whistle blow
When was training conducted in the study by Fagen
-During 7:30 - 10:00 am ; morning sessions
- During 4:00 - 7:00 pm ; afternoon sessions
-no elephant went longer than 2 days without a training session
How did the elephants indicate their unwillingness to participate- right to withdraw
They would do this by walking to the other side of the stall or
turning away from the trainer
Where were the mahouts during training in the study by Fagen
the mahouts were present at all sessions and stood at the periphery (edge) for the safety of the trainer but were instructed not to speak or signal the elephants in any way.
What were the 3 techniques of SPR used in the study by Fagen
1) Capture technique
2) Lure technique
3) Shaping technique
Describe capture technique as an SPR technique in the study by Fagen
A spontaneous natural behavior is captured by marking and rewarding the behavior, until it becomes appropriate for collection of the sample for tb
Example;
capture the natural blow associated with breathing and shape it for more force
Describe lure technique as an SPR technique
-Here for non-natural behaviours the animal is initially drawn into a wanted body position , by a strategic placement of a reward
-This body position is rewarded and used as a starting point from which to work on a desired behaviour
Give an example of capture technique used in the study by Fagen et al
capture the natural blow associated with breathing and shape it for more force
Give an example of the lure technique used in the study by Fagen et al
To get the saline solution to the base of the trunk , banana pieces are held above the trainers head for the elephant to trunk up
Describe the shaping technique
This involves rewarding approximations closer to the target behaviour
What were the 5 behavioural tasks
1) Trunk here
2) Trunk up
3) Bucket
4) Blow
5)Steady
Explain “Trunk here” behavioural task used in Fagen et al
-The elephant gently places the end of her trunk in the trainers outstretched hand in preparation to allow the instillation of saline or water into her trunk
-The lure method was initially used to teach this with banana pieces placed on the outstretched palm of the trainer for the elephant to retrieve.
-The lure method was removed after a few repetitions
Explain “Trunk up” behavioural task used in Fagen et al
-The elephant lifts her trunk upward to allow the saline or water to run down to the base of her trunk
-The elephants were trained for this task using lure and shaping techniques
-For the Lure technique the trainer initially lured the trunk up position by bringing banana pieces a few inches above the forehead , for the elephants to retrieve with their trunks
Explain “Bucket” behavioural task used in Fagen et al
-The elephant places the distal end of her trunk in a bucket in preparation to blow
-The elephants were trained for this task with a lure where the banana pieces were placed in the bottom of the bucket
Explain “Blow” behavioural task used in Fagen et al
-The elephant gives a strong exhale through her trunk to blow out the solution for sample collection
-The elephants are trained for this behaviour by capturing the natural exhale associated with breathing and shaping it for more force , in order to collect enough sample for testing.
Explain “Steady” behavioural task used in Fagen et al
- The elephant holds the position she was previously asked to do
- The elephants were trained for this behaviour after they had learnt certain positions in which to apply the hold cue
-Shaping was used to increase the amount of time a position was held.
-Relaxation of the trainer out of the hand cue position , indicated the elephant could relax out of the hold as well and defined conclusion of the steady behaviour
How was the steady behaviour in Fagen et al reinforced
The steady behaviour was reinforced by repetitive marking of the hold with the primary reinforcer , delivered upon completion of the hold.
What happened once the elephant was skilled in the 5 basic tasks
The trainer progressed to create strings
of behaviour through behavioural chaining
What is behavioural chaining in the study by Fagen et al
this is when separately acquired skills are performed in order, following the verbal cue
Why were three other tasks targeting trunk up and trunk down abandoned in the study by Fagen et al
-They were abandoned as they were not needed for performance of a trunk wash in this population
What were the verbal cues that were paired with the behaviour in the study by Fagen
-Monosyllabic distinctive words created to mean nothing in either English or Nepali to avoid any misconception on the mahouts part that the elephant could potentially learn the meaning (as researchers didn’t want the mahouts to think elephants understood human language)
Describe the desensitisation method in the study by Fagenet al
-The trainer introduced the use of a syringe in the trunk here position ,
this was done incrementally using a desensitisation method
over a series of repetitions of the whole trunk wash sequence , the syringe was gradually brought closer to ;
-the elephants trunk
then touching the trunk
then inserted
then inserted with increasing amounts of fluid
How did the trainers in the study by Fagen reduce the likeliness that the elephants would drink the solution
The elephants were given water to drink at the beginning of each training session
What were the results in the study by Fagen (regarding the juvenile elephants)
-The 4 juvenile elephants successfully learned the trunk wash however the adult elephant did not
Why did the adult elephant in the study by Fagen not learn the trunk wash
1)the mahouts claimed that because of her age she had a visual impairment and trunk weakness
2)she had a foot abscess in one of her feet
3)She was distracted and impatient during the last week of the study because of a 2 month old calf in the next stall that kept on wandering into her stall distracting her
What were the results about elephant 2 and 4 in the study by Fagen
Elephants 2 and 4 never passed their steady test
What were the results in the study by Fagen regarding elephant 5
Elephant 5 did not pass her blowing to bucket , desensitisation to syringe or steady test
What were the results in the study by Fagen with data
the elephants gradually improved their performance over time
the mean success rate went from 39% after ten sessions to 89.3% after 35 sessions
What were the conclusions in the study by Fagen
Juvenile traditionally trained elephants can be trained to participate in trunk wash using only SPR techniques
moreover elephants voluntarily participate rendering the traditional punishment techniques of training
List 3 strengths of the study by Fagen
-It upheld the guidelines when using animals as ss
-high internal validity
-quantitative data
List 3 weaknesses of the study by Fagen
low in generalisability - small sample size
low ecological validity
low reliability
Useful applications to everyday life from the study by Fagen
SPR technique of training can be adopted to help vets obtain samples for testing of tb and other diseases
this technique is more ethically acceptable as it does not use the traditional punishment techniques
Why is the study by fagen from the learning approach
it investigates how operant conditioning techniques of SPR such as Lure , shaping , capture can be used to train elephants to trunk wash in order to obtain samples for tb testing
this is consistent with the assumption that operant conditioning can be used to explain changes in behaviour
Individual and situational explanations from the study by Fagen
Elephant 5 was unable to learn the trunk wash because of situational factors - her age
Elephant 5 was unable to learn the trunk wash because of situational factors - the 2 month calf
Outline how ‘session times’ were measured in the study by Fagen
The assistant timed the session to the nearest minute;
* It started from when the first cue was offered;
* It ended after the elephant’s response to the last cue offered
What saline solution did the elephants start with
they started on 0.9 saline as the sample medium
they were then transitioned to plain water for training purposes
Controls and standardization
- the eligibility criteria
- the trainers were told not to speak or signal the elephants in any way during training sessions
- the elephants were given drinking water before every session to prevent them from drinking the solution
-they used monosyllabic words as verbal cues
Nature vs Nurture debate
nurture - the elephants were taught the trunk wash behaviour using SPR techniques
this supports the nurture side
nature - one elephant no. 5 was unable to learn the procedure because her age this supports the nature side
